Between Oz and Kansas
by Al Kristopher
Summary: Having failed to stop Marche, Ritz is left to contemplate what remains of her time in Ivalice. What will happen to everything she loves? What will happen to Shara? Made Shoujo-ai for extra spice. SPOILER WARNING!


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Between Oz and Kansas

A Ritz + Shara Dramatic Romance by Al Kristopher

A woman dedicated to simply enjoying herself by the evening fire, rather than dwelling on thoughts and conflicts that were beyond her understanding anyway, smiled faintly as she raised her face to the sky and watched the column of smoke curl upwards. Shara D'lan didn't know what to say about real worlds or dream worlds, or what was the truth and what was artificial. Her fingers could feel the grass beneath her as she supported herself on her hands, and her face could feel the heat of the fire. The smoke smelled of pungent fir and the flames were waving with red and yellow light, and that was all she needed to know. It was night, and the stars were out, and there was a fire, and she had lived on that land for many years. That was all she needed to know.

Ritz, on the other hand, was a different story. She had delayed her friend Marche from reverting the world back to its normal state, but didn't delay him enough. He was off to Ambervale palace to confront Mewt and Remedi, leaving her to spend uncertain hours alone with her Viera tribe. She hadn't seen him in days, and each sunset made her feel more and more uncertain. Ritz had made the most of her time so far, but the past few nights had been especially hard on her. She didn't know if she'd be able to wake up in her sleeping bag or in her bed at home.

Shara continued to watch the stars calmly, and decided not to think about matters beyond her understanding. However, Ritz was all alone and scared, and had huddled all by herself in some corner far away from the camp. Shara turned her head and saw the beautiful young lady in red, and smiled sadly. She loved Ritz very much, and didn't want to see her so upset. Even if it was for a brief while, just for a day, or even a moment, she would go and make her friend's life pleasant. The Viera kept her sad smile as she rose up from the grass and walked over to the trembling girl. She placed her hand on her shoulder and rubbed.

"Ritz, what troubles you so much?" she asked, her voice feminine and strong. Ritz already seemed to feel better in her friend's presence, so she turned around and looked up, still with a sad face.

"I guess I'm still… stubborn," she replied with a sigh. Shara sat down across from her and drew Ritz in for a hug. The two of them had gotten very close in the long time they knew each other, and could easily make the other happy with just a simple gesture. They both tried to smile.

"You don't want to leave?"

"No… although I know I have to."

"Is this still about your hair?" said Shara gently. She thought Ritz was being silly at first, and that it had all been some childish, selfish deal of immaturity--but when Ritz explained the entire true story to Shara one lonely night, the Viera's heart went out to her and she understood Ritz's pain. The redhead shook her head in response.

"…Not entirely," she whispered, her face turning pink. "I, uh, I've really been thinking. If I go, and if we all go, what will happen to this world? What will happen to my clan and all the friends that I made? What will happen… to you? To us?" Ritz stared into Shara's face desperately, taking the Viera's spindly fingers into her own. Shara looked back into her friend's strong blue eyes and saw the doubt and fear within them, and held her closer. Ritz wasn't just afraid to go back home to a depressed mother; she was also mortally afraid of losing those she loved most. Shara never really considered it, but if she was really the figment of some awesome wish, what would become of her if the wish was reversed?

"You mean you think this world and all the people in it will simply vanish?" she said. Ritz frowned and nodded her head acutely. Shara sighed, frowned, and ran her soft furry fingers over the face of her closest and greatest friend. It had also been a fear of hers, that same fear that Ritz had--that when the time came, one or the other would cease to exist. Even if both worlds were real and Ritz was sent to her own place, they would probably…

"I'm not sure," whispered the redhead softly. She leaned forward a bit and placed her forehead against her friend's, and began to weep openly as the worst possible thought crossed her mind. "I only know that no matter what happens, we will never see each other again. We… live in separate worlds, and…"

"Never?" whispered Shara, combing her long fingers through Ritz's beautiful hair. "Ritz… you shall always be in my heart. I can live on, knowing that somewhere out there, a great human lady is thinking of me and loving me from afar. You will go on too, because you're strong. We may never meet in person…"

"But that's why I'm so scared," whispered Ritz fearfully. She crushed her eyes shut, slipped her hands over the back of Shara's neck, and pulled herself in until the two met in a kiss. "I'll never… be able… to _do_ things with you. It will be like we're dead or something!" Shara shook her head, and although she tried to stay calm and optimistic for her friend, there was no denying her sadness. She would miss all the wonderful things she and Ritz had shared, but some wonderful flame kept her hope alive in the face of cruel impossibility.

"Don't worry, Ritz," she whispered softly as she kissed her friend again--and again. "Things have a way of turning out for the best. Please, let's not think about this any more. When it happens, it will happen. I just want to spend as much time with you as I can. Let's be happy, even for a little while." Ritz sighed, and leaned forward to kiss her friend again before she nuzzled her neck. Shara shivered with delight as she felt the warm breath spread out across her furry skin.

"You're right. I'm making a mess of things. Yes, you're right. I want to have lots of memories of the wonderful girl I met in a dream. And she will never forget the person who was both human and Viera at the same time." Shara grinned and chuckled softly, and kissed the back of Ritz's head as she continued to weave through her hair. She casually began to pick at the small white shirt her friend had been wearing, admiring the simple fabric.

"No, I won't, because you're my personal hero. Now let's get ready for bed. It's late, and I'd like to watch the sun rise with you." Ritz smiled and blushed a little, and leaned in to kiss her friend again. The two of them made their way to the small sleeping bag they shared, and after the removal of formalities, demonstrated the depth of the love they shared by comforting each other in the best way they knew how.

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Morning came slowly and gently, but as the sun rose, it was not greeted by a beautiful Viera and a strong human--at least not in the way it was used to. Shara and Ritz squinted wearily as the gray skies turned into a dim purple, and then into orange, and smiled faintly as the orb of fire came back for another day. They were laying on their stomachs, arms crossed below them, their bare backs to the bleak sky. The beauty of the sunrise filled them with the love and life that had accumulated over all their days spent together, and they turned to each other and grinned.

"Beautiful… It was worth it to wake up," whispered Ritz. Shara smiled sweetly.

"Mm-hmm. Now let's go back to bed. I feel like I could lay here for years." Ritz beamed at her and happily returned to the embrace of her friend, feeling the throb of her wonderful heart tune in synch to her own. The feeling was perfectly erotic; hands clasped against hands and a leg was hooked over hips protectively as the two friends resumed their snuggle. They stayed sleeping in each other's embrace for many more hours, and continued long after all the other Vieras woke up.

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"Hmm… it's afternoon," observed a Summoner as she returned from gathering food. "Ritz and Shara must have a hard time waking up."

"No wonder," pointed an Elementalist slyly. Both the Summoner and the Elementalist grinned as they saw Ritz and Shara still in their sleeping bag, cuddling close and sleeping like angels. The Elementalist chuckled cruelly and slowly snuck over to them.

"I guess it's up to me to wake them up!"

"Don't," whispered a Sniper softly, taking her comrade's arm. The veiled woman shook her head. "Let them sleep. If what Ritz says is right, then this may be their last day together. Let them spend it however they want." The Elementalist apologized, and after looking down at her friends, she admitted that they looked awfully cute together.

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Finally, Ritz and Shara woke up. They realized it was already afternoon, and with flushed faces, they crawled out of their sleeping bag and got dressed. The Vieras that made up Clan Ritz greeted them officially once they returned, and they all insisted that the two of them should spend the entire day together, away from monsters and missions. Ritz and Shara turned red a little, but took their offer and walked away from the camp, hand in hand.

A few hours later, it began to snow. The women looked up into the sky, smiled sadly, and knew that their time had come. The snow was very beautiful, though, as beautiful as the white hair of the Viera and the human, who had been blessed with great fortune and a greater bond. They grinned at each other and kept their hands locked firmly, and kissed one last time before the dream ended.

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One week passed.

Ritz blew out a sigh, pushing the locks of white hair she had into the air. No matter what world she was in or what job she took, math would always be the class she hated the most--especially if it was taught by the very dull Mr. Wedge. Her eyes glazed over into a dull lifeless blue as equations and problems were sprawled over the board like so many little fairies. Ritz was barely able to keep her head from slumping over in exhaustion, and ended up drawing a beautiful rabbit-like creature on a sheet of paper. Just for fun, she added a Judge that had saved them both from a nasty Marlboro who used status afflictions too many times. She drew herself in as well, laughing as she slew the creature.

A knock came at the door and Ritz's art was distracted. Mr. Wedge stopped doodling on the chalkboard and went to answer it. Ritz could hear him greeting another teacher and a student too, from the sounds of it, and watched with interest as he brought the student in. Ritz snapped out of her haze as she got a good look at the student: it was a girl, a little older than her, with white hair, slightly long ears, and a face that looked awfully familiar. Ritz broke out in an icy sweat as her imagination played tricks on her.

Nah! Couldn't be!!

"Class," said Mr. Wedge after he bade the other teacher farewell, "it seems we have a new student who was just transferred here from another city. She's a good worker from what I hear, so I would like for you all to greet her. Her name is Miss Shara Viera."

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Impossible!! screamed Ritz mentally. Her eyes bugged out so much that she was afraid a Judge would come by and give her a card for it. She rubbed them just to make sure; a few nasty students snickered at her name.

"Shara Viera… ha! We'll have fun with this one! And she's a granny just like Ritzy here! Haha!"

"Oh, grow up, Lyle!" snorted Ritz bitterly. The other student stuck his tongue out. Ritz's face flushed slightly as the new girl walked over and sat at the vacant desk across from her.

"Hi, uh, I guess you know my name," she said, using a very familiar voice. Ritz could only stare as she saw the deep resemblance, and although a part of her wanted to deny it, a bigger part wanted to accept it so desperately. She continued, gently, "It's actually Shara Dillon Viera. It's a… foreign name…" Ritz smiled sweetly and extended her arm. Shara took it and returned the smile.

"I'm Ritz Malbeur--that's also a foreign name." Shara smiled sweetly and sat down at the desk.

"It's great meeting you, Ritz. You don't mind if I sit next to you, do you?"

"No, go right ahead!" she exclaimed politely. Shara thanked her; Lyle snorted and chuckled again.

"Yeah, well, birds of a white feather stick together."

"I'll stick a bird in _your_ white if you don't be quiet!" growled Ritz quietly. Mr. Wedge didn't hear her remark, but Lyle and Shara did. The former grumbled and decided to go back to his doodling; the latter laughed.

"I can already tell we're going to be good friends, Ritz," she said. Shara gave Ritz a wink, and passed her a note once she figured Mr. Wedge wasn't watching. As Ritz read it, her insides melted and her heart soared into the sky.

"Meet me after class, Dream Girl. We have some catching up to do."

Ritz sighed happily, and returned to her math problems with strength anew. Perhaps living in the real world wouldn't be so bad after all.

The End


End file.
